Village Farms poised for hemp, CBD production in U.S.

Village Farms International, which recently completed conversion of 1.1 million square feet of greenhouse area in a partnership with cannabis company Pure Sunfarms in Canada, is now poised to pursue hemp and Cannabidiol (CBD) oil production at its U.S. facilities.

The company has filed documents with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to list common shares on the NASDAQ Capital Market under “VFF,” according to a news release.

“As a company with substantive U.S. assets and operations and, with our recently announced intention to aggressively pursue potential opportunities in the now federally legal U.S.
hemp and CBD industry, the listing of our common shares on NASDAQ is intended to provide broader exposure to, and greater liquidity for, U.S. investors," CEO Michael DeGiglio said in the release. “A NASDAQ listing will provide Village Farms with access to the largest equity market in the world to support our intended hemp and CBD growth strategy should U.S. state laws follow the U.S. federal decision to legalize hemp, as well as, potentially, for cannabis, in the event that it is federally legalized in the U.S.”

In anticipation of the recent passage of the farm bill, which includes the Hemp Farming Act, the company has undertaken “broad and extensive foundational work to ensure Village Farms can move quickly, aggressively and profoundly,” DeGiglio said in another news release. The Hemp Farming Act federally legalizes hemp and hemp products in the U.S., including extracts, derivatives and cannabinoids.

At the Delta, British Columbia, facility, Pure Sunfarms is waiting for Health Canada to approve 344,000 square feet for cultivation of cannabis, bringing the total to just over 1 million square feet.

According to the presentation, Pure Sunfarms has options on Village Farms’ Delta, British Columbia vegetable greenhouses, which total 3.7 million square feet. The Texas vegetable greenhouses (four facilities totaling 5.7 million square feet/130 acres) can be rapidly converted to hemp or cannabis (upon federal legalization), according to the presentation.
Village Farms is the sole owner of the Texas facilities, but would benefit from experience gained in the 50-50 venture with Pure Sunfarms in Canada, according to the presentation.

The company also has vegetable-growing partnerships in Mexico, and in Ontario and British Columbia.